Yuzuru Ema/Plot
Background Ema joined Border approximately one year before Chika Amatori and Yūma Kuga. Mirai Hatohara took him under her wing and became his mentor. He was very fond of her, and praised her skills despite her unwillingness to shoot people directly. She told him about her idea to combine Lightning and Lead Bullet to overcome her aversion, as well as of its impracticality. He began to resent the upper management of the organization when her mental block caused Hatohara to be removed from the away expedition team despite passing the qualification exam, and his loathing only intensified when his mentor supposedly quit due to being sidelined. Since then, he refused to acknowledge anyone else as a mentor. At some point Kageura Unit was formed and climbed to A-rank no. 6, but it was demoted when Masato Kageura threw an uppercut at Eizō Netsuki.Volume 13 Character Profiles Introduction Arc Kageura Unit presumably takes part in the extermination of all Rads in Mikado City. Large-Scale Invasion Arc Due to Masafumi Shinoda preventing B-rank units with missing members from fighting against Aftokrator's forces out of fear of capture, Kageura Unit was not deployed. B-Rank Rank Battles Arc Round Two Since Azuma Unit, Katori Unit, Ōji Unit and Yuba Unit competes in a four-way rank battle in the day division on February 5, and Ikoma Unit and Ninomiya Unit are known to have clashed on that day, Kageura Unit presumably faces off against them in the night division. Round Four On February 10, Ema shows up at HQ for joint Sniper training. He moves Isami Tōma's bag to his other side so that Chika and Izuho Natsume can be next to one another. During practice, Ema ignores the instructions and shoots his bullets into a star shape. Chika, Natsume and Akane Hiura compliment his accuracy and Tōma introduces him as his pupil, but Ema rebuts that his only mentor is Hatohara. Chika and he sit to the side while Izuho trains with Tōma. She asks him about Hatohara, and he tells her about her being sidelined due to her unwillingness to shoot others. Chika confesses that she too is unable to shoot others, surprising Ema as Tamakoma Second will be facing Kageura Unit next. The following day, Ema and Hiro Kitazoe are met with the unusual sight of their captain watching the logs, and a flustered Ema wonders if he should have a look at Tamakoma Second's fights too. On February 15, during the night division of rank battles, the match between Kageura Unit, Ninomiya Unit, Azuma Unit and Tamakoma Second begins in a snowy Cityscape B. Ema spawns to the west of the map and fires at Masataka Ninomiya when he retaliates against Kitazoe's Random Meteor, but the Shooter easily blocks his shot. Ema considers abandoning his teammate, but when Ninomiya begins to chase him, he moves to support him. However, when Chika is targeted by both Azuma Unit and Ninomiya Unit, he saves her by sniping at Sumiharu Inukai, who is then finished off by Kageura. Ninomiya, who has climbed up to Ema's hiding spot in the meanwhile, states that he did not think him so partial to Tamakoma Second, to which the Sniper responds that he simply does not like the Shooter's team. He manages to take shelter into the mall, but his leg is injured, so he tells Kitazoe not to help him and warns him that he will not be able to buy him a lot of time just as Ninomiya blasts his way into the building. Ema bails out moments later. When only Haruaki Azuma, Kageura and Ninomiya are left, Kitazoe and Nire pressure their captain into staying hidden until the end, dismissing Ema's objections. Time runs out without further developments and Kageura Unit ties in second place with Azuma Unit. Galopoula's Blitz The following day, Ema participates in joint stealth and target acquisition training, during which he observes that Chika has no qualms about shooting others during practice. When she shares her fear of being useless to her team, Ema is reminded of what Hatohara told him before leaving Border and takes Natsume and her to his unit's strategy room. He hypothesizes that Chika cannot bring herself to shoot only when she knows that the target will be injured, so, with Hikari Nire's help, he has her try out a combination of Lightning and Lead Bullet. Natsume praises his resourcefulness, but Ema clarifies that the idea was Hatohara's, although her muzzle velocity was not combat standard. While Chika practices, the trainees asks him if he has a crush on her, which he scrambles to deny, thinking to himself that he does not want Chika to suffer as his mentor did due to her perceived uselessness. They try out a variety of Sniper and Gunner Triggers before settling on Lightning and Hound. Chika comments that she has fun overcoming obstacles with them, a sentiment which Ema privately agrees with. Natsume states that they have plenty of time do spend like that, and when he echoes her, the trainee teases him cryptically. Round Five On February 19, the night of Galopoula's blitz, Kageura Unit fights a rank battle against Azuma Unit and Yuba Unit. Round Six Kageura Unit fights against Ninomiya Unit, Azuma Unit and Suzunari First in the night division of the sixth round of rank battles. Kageura Unit and Ninomiya Unit tie at the top with three points. No unit receives the survival bonus due to there being multiple survivors. Following the match, Kageura Unit remains in second place with a point total of 34. Round Seven At the end of a Radar search drill, Natsume thanks Ema and Tōma for their tutelage. Ema becomes jealous when Kōji Oki seems to be flirting with Chika. Moments later he receives a text from Kageura inviting Tōma and him to hang out at his family's restaurant with Kitazoe, Kō Murakami and Yūma. Kageura unexpectedly reveals Ema's crush on Chika and that he plans to throw the upcoming match against Tamakoma Second so they can join the expedition to the Neighborhood. Yūma assures him that Chika's place on the expedition is already guaranteed, but Ema is not pacified, reckoning that she would feel better if she went with her teammates. Tetsuji Arafune and Atsushi Hokari join the discussion, the former advising Ema to qualify for the expedition himself so he can protect her. When Yūma confidently states that they will win regardless of what Ema intends to do, the Sniper leaves to study Tamakoma Second's logs, determined not to lose the match. True to his word, he researches his opponents until March 1, when the teams are due to compete. Despite discovering mere minutes before the match that Tamakoma Second has added a new member, Ema remains unwavering in his resolve, which not even the selection of the anti-Sniper stage Cityscape D can shake. He decides to enter the mall and fight at mid-range instead of the attempting to pick opponents off from outside, which would be safer but less likely to lead to scoring. When the round begins, he spawns atop a building in the north-eastern side of the map, which turns out to have a night setting. Wearing Bagworm, he makes his way to the mall, telling his teammates to start fighting without him. He hides on the fifrth floor just as Osamu Mikumo, Noboru Koarai and Tsuneyuki Okudera reach it. He attempts to snipe both Osamu and Koarai, but the Shooter spots him and not only dodges, but also pushes Koarai out of the way. Before Ema can get off a second shot, the lights in the whole building go out; however aims at the glow of Osamu's Raygust, shooting off his right arm. The injury is not fatal and Osamu manages to escape thanks to the darkness. Deducing Taichi Betsuyaku to be fiddling with the toolbox, Kitazoe tells Ema to shoot at the fusebox, but the Suzunari First Sniper has it and himself protected with Escudo. He is however defeated by Hyuse, who, together with Yūma, proceed to join the battle between Suzunari First and Kageura Unit on the sixth floor. Ema decides to stay on the fifth and try to score points from there, although the defeat of his teammates prevents him from focusing exclusively on Tamakoma Second. He manages to take out Tatsuya Kuruma and blast Osamu's leg before Koarai and Okudera converge on him. He cleverly smashes through the glass parapet instead of leaping over it as a precaution against Senkū, but as he falls he is sniped by Azuma, whom Ema did not expect to have ventured inside the mall. He bails out, earning a second point shortly afterwards as Osamu bails out due to the wounds he inflicted.{ref|name=c173|c=173}} At the end of the match, Ema notices that Kageura is uncharacteristically somber as they listen to the commentators' final remarks. Kitazoe tells him that he was stressed due to Ema's participation in the away expedition depending on their performance. Kageura barges in and that it is not over yet and that it had been a long time since he had something worth fighting for.{ref|name=c175|c=175}} Round Eight On March 5, Kageura Unit faces off against Ōji Unit and Azuma Unit in the day division of rank battles. Azuma Unit wins the battle, which took place in Exhibition Hall, with a final score of 4-3-3. References Category:Yuzuru Ema Category:Plot